


In Another Life

by SleepDeprivedIdiot__xoxo



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Yakuza, Angst, Angst and Drama, Angst and Feels, Angst and Romance, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:54:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28165839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SleepDeprivedIdiot__xoxo/pseuds/SleepDeprivedIdiot__xoxo
Summary: In another life, maybe this could have been a different story. Maybe Akaashi could’ve been a prince waiting for his knight in shining armour. Maybe Bokuto could’ve been a hero searching for his one true love. Maybe their lives could've been normal, where they didn't belong to opposing, warring families. Or at least normal enough for them to fall in love like they so desperately wanted. Then, maybe, just maybe, the two of them could’ve had their happily ever after. In another life.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou
Comments: 6
Kudos: 55





	1. The Coffee Shop

“Shit,” the spikey hair with frosted tips stranger harshly breathed, his eyes wide in shock as coffee splashed all over the front of Akaashi’s white shirt. “Fuck, I’m so sorry.” 

“Ah,” Akaashi quietly groaned, glancing down at the dark brown stain on his t-shirt as a small shiver ran up his spine from the sudden coldness. Looking back up at the spikey haired stranger, Akaashi mashed his lips together and breathed deeply through his nose before annoyedly responding, “It’s fine.” 

The stranger stood in the doorway of a local coffee shop, holding open the door that Akaashi had just walked out of when he bumped into the stranger (quite literally). It was a warm autumn day and the leaves were just starting to turn a brilliant orange and red. As the stranger stared at the stain on Akaashi’s shirt, Akaashi silently thanked the universe that he had spilled ice-coffee on instead of hot. 

“Here,” the stranger quickly said, stepping to the side to hold the door open with his foot as he bent down to pick up Akaashi’s empty cup. “Let me get you another one.” 

“It’s fine, really,” Akaashi said as he harshly wiped down the front of his shirt with his hand. The stranger quirked his lips to the side in a frown, and Akaashi stared at him a moment before giving a sigh and a small, genuine smile. “I’m serious, it’s okay.” 

“At least let me get you another,” the stranger insisted, an apologetic smile creeping onto his lips. “For ruining your shirt.” 

“You’re not gonna let this go, are you?” Akaashi chuckled. 

“It’s not really in my nature,” the stranger replied, giving a small laugh himself. “Please?” 

“Fine,” Akaashi finally conceded, shaking his head in exasperation. 

Akaashi turned back into the coffee shop and the stranger followed him, the door shutting behind them with a soft thud. The smell of roasted coffee beans filled the shop, and the sound of the espresso machine resounded loudly. The stranger trailed closely behind Akaashi as they got into the back of the line, Akaashi’s empty coffee cup having already been tossed into the bin next to the door. 

“I didn’t catch your name,” the stranger said, coming to stand next to Akaashi. Akaashi looked up at the stranger blankly, then gave a smile. 

“Keishi,” Akaashi lied, his tone natural and easy from years of practice. “What’s yours?” 

“Taro,” the stranger replied with a sheepish chuckle. 

“Really?” Akaashi asked with an amused smile. “Like the food?”

“Yeah,” Taro responded with a sigh, a small smile on his own lips. “Long story short, my dad proposed to my mom with Taro flavored ice cream.” 

“Interesting,” Akaashi chuckled, earning a bright smile from Taro. 

There was a small moment of silence before Taro turned to Akaashi and asked, “Do you come here often?”

“It’s my first time actually. I happened to be in the area and wanted something to drink,” Akaashi replied with a soft smile. 

“Oh cool. I think you’ll like it here, they have good coffee.” 

“I hope I’ll get to try some this time,” Akaashi teased, making Taro laugh. 

“I hope so too.”

“What about you? Do you come here often?”

“Yeah, my place is nearby so I come here pretty often.” 

“That’s nice,” Akaashi absentmindedly replied, looking forwards again, his face pleasant but expressionless. The two men stood in silence as they waited for their turn to order. Suddenly, Akaashi felt his phone buzz in his pocket, and he pulled his phone out. 

“Hey,” Akaashi said as he pressed his phone to his ear. Akaashi glanced up at Taro and gave a smile before holding up one finger and taking two steps out of the line. 

“Are you still in Canis territory?” came the voice on the other end of the phone.

“Yes, why?” Akaashi asked, stealing a glance at Taro. 

At that moment Taro also happened to be looking at Akaashi and, when their eyes locked, Akaashi felt his heart skip and a heat bloom over his cheeks. Taro smiled, a light pink dusting his cheeks, and Akaashi gave a soft smile back.

“I want to go to a video game shop at the edge of our territory. There’s a new game that I want and the shop near the house is sold out. Wanna meet up at the park near the south border and go together?” the voice on the phone said.

“Okay.”

“Cool, see you soon.”

With that, Akaashi hung up the phone and slipped it back into his pocket while walking back to Taro’s side. 

“Sorry about that,” Akaashi said. “It was my brother.” 

“Ah,” Taro replied, staring up at the menu. Without looking at Akaashi, Taro asked, “Are you guys close?”

Suddenly, Akaashi felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and goosebumps erupted all over his arms. He furrowed his eyebrows and quickly glanced at Taro, wondering why the stranger had asked such a question. Treading lightly, Akaashi responded, “Yes. Why?” 

“Just wondering,” Taro said with a smile. “I have a brother too.” 

“Oh, that’s nice,” Akaashi replied, staring up at the menu and pushing away the seemingly unfounded suspicion and paranoia. “Are you two close?” 

“Yeah, thick as thieves,” Taro laughed, earning a smile from Akaashi.

The conversation died down and the two men stayed quiet for the rest of the wait in line, only speaking again when you were giving your orders to the barista at the counter. After ordering, the two waited in the pick up area in silence once more. 

Akaashi stole glances at man every now and then, trying to figure out if he was just being paranoid or if he was right to feel suspicious about the stranger. And definitely  _ not  _ because Akaashi also found the man extremely handsome. His strong jawline but delicate cheekbones framing the fierce and fiery look in his beautiful, hazel eyes definitely were not the most breathtaking things Akaashi had seen in a very long time. Nope. Not at all. No way.

“Venti Iced Americano!” the barista called out, placing the drink and a straw on the counter and walking away.

“That’s me,” Akaashi said, smiling up at Taro. Akaashi moved forwards and grabbed his drink before turning to Taro again and saying, “Thank you, Taro-san.”

“It was the least I could do,” Taro replied with a sheepish grin. “Sorry again.” 

Akaashi smiled at him once more, stabbed the straw into his drink, and took a sip before walking away. 

______

Bokuto watched the stranger, whom he had spilled coffee all over, leave the coffee shop, silently thanking the universe that the stranger had been so kind… and very, incredibly pretty. It was as if Bokuto had walked straight into a coffee shop alternate universe.

Suddenly, the wail of sirens pierced through the air as two police cars and an ambulance flew by in the street in front of Keishi as he stood on the sidewalk. Keishi seemed not to be phased by the scene, and Bokuto furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Then, he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He took it out and saw a text from “Bedhead”. 

_ War room in 15 _ \-- Bedhead. 

Bokuto slipped his phone back into his pocket and glanced back to where Keishi had been standing to find the man was nowhere in sight. A moment later, he heard his order called, and he grabbed his drink before heading out the door, pushing thoughts of the pretty stranger out of his mind as he mentally prepared himself for what was to come.

About 15 minutes later, Bokuto found himself sitting in a large and ornately decorated library. From floor to ceiling, oak shelves held hundreds upon hundreds of books, all extensively worn from years of reading. A giant and grand chandelier hung over a long mahogany table, and Bokuto sat at the right hand of the person sitting at the head of the table, and directly across from his friend, the one named “Bedhead”. 

In total, 14 men sat around the table, 7 older and 7 younger. Everyone wore button down, long-sleeve shirts with dark slacks. Each of the younger men wore the same colored pin as one of the older men, denoting that the pair were father-son. But Bokuto wore a jade medallion. The same jade medallion that the head of the table wore. And on the jade medallion was carved the face of the Great Grey Wolf, the insignia of the powerful yakuza family that owned East Tokyo: the Canis Family.

“Gentlemen,” the man at the head of the table declared with a mysterious smile. “When was the last time we all gathered like this?” There was silence at the table as the men all looked at each other. 

“Two months ago,” Bokuto finally said, looking directly at the head man. “We were discussing the expansion of Canis terrority with the new zoning laws proposed by Congressman Yoshida.” 

“Yes, very good, Kotaro,” the head man replied, giving Bokuto an approving nod. Then, he looked at the rest of the men at the table, his expression having turned deadly serious. “There has been an unforeseen “hiccup”, as you may call it, in our plans.” 

“What happened?” Bedhead asked, furrowing his eyebrows at the head man. The head man gave a solemn hum before responding. 

“Congressman Yoshida has had an unfortunate accident,” the head man said in a low and deep voice. A quiet murmur resounded among the men at the unexpected news, and Bokuto locked eyes with Bedhead, both men giving each other concerned looks. 

When the voices quieted down, the head man continued. “Because the target was Yoshida, I’m inclined to believe that this was a message from the Leo Family to the rest of Congress to maintain current territory boundaries with the new zoning laws.” 

The Leo Family was the largest yakuza family who owned West Tokyo and who had been the biggest threat to the Canis family for generations. The Leo Family was notorious for lurking in the shadows and controlling the flow of society with their stealthy precision and tactical prowess, much like the predatory big-cats that the family had been named after when it was founded over 50 years ago.

“Which member of the family was it?” Bokuto asked, looking at the head man. “Do we know?” 

“Not for certain,” came the response from the head man. “But based on the evidence, or lack thereof, there is a good chance that it was the Jaguar.” 

Loud and furious whispers erupted among the men, and Bokuto stared down at the table, his thumbs tapping together in his lap and his eyebrows furrowed in concern. The Jaguar was the nickname given by the Canis group to an unknown member of the Leo group. 

Jaguar was a breed of predatory cat that moved camouflaged in the shadows while stalking its prey before taking it down in one foul swoop. It was an appropriate name for the extremely talented Leo family member who managed to intimidate and scare off many affluent Canis supporters without a trace of evidence. 

“How are we going to respond?” Bedhead asked, quieting down the whole table. He looked to the head man who leaned back in his seat. “This is the third time in the last two months that the Jaguar has done something like this. It’s going to scare our supporters.” 

“Kuroo’s right,” Bokuto added, looking up at Bedhead (Kuroo). “Plus, any rumors that we’re being pushed around by the Leo family will hurt our reputation as a whole.” The head man gave a steady glare at Bokuto, and Bokuto cleared his throat before awkwardly correcting, “Sorry, I mean Tetsuro.” 

“You and  _ Tetsuro  _ are both right,” the head man said, giving Bokuto one last hard look before addressing the rest of the table. “That senile old man heading the Leo Family has been making bolder moves since the start of the year, and not just with intimidating our supporters. He has increased the numbers of defenders along the territory boundaries, and there have been more Leo scouts spotted deep within our domain. With how well I know that fool, this does not bode well.” 

The air hung heavy as a deafening silence settled over the room. 

“The last time this happened,” Bokuto slowly started, glancing around the table before looking at the head man. “Was right before the Blood War between the two families.” 

“Yes,” the head man slowly said, nodding his head and looking straight down at the table. “It was.” 

The Blood War, named after its incredible bloodshed, was a devastating time for not only the two families, but also all of Tokyo. Members of both families died by the dozens every week, and no one, not even the police, dared to venture out into the world until the war came to an end with the deaths of the two family’s bosses. Bokuto and his brothers were just children during the war and had been shielded from all of it. But they hadn’t come out unscathed as the war had claimed the lives of Kuroo’s mother and Bokuto’s twin sister. 

Another war between the families would surely mean countless casualties and years of hardship. And the Canis Family would be starting the war at a disadvantage. The key to winning the war would be to capture or kill the main family and the heir. But the Canis Family had yet to identify the next heir to the Leo Family or any of the main family’s sons. 

“We’ve had almost ten years of peace since then,” Boktuo whispered, looking down at the table with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion and concern.

“Yes,” the head man replied. Then, he looked pointedly at Bokuto. “As the heir to the family, I would like to hear your thoughts on what our next actions should be, Kotaro.” 

Bokuto stared at the man, his mind running through every possible action and their every possible outcome. Truth be told, Bokuto would usually turn to Kuroo for some advice when it came to strategies, but since Bokuto had turned 18, the headman, his father, had been grilling him more often in front of the rest of the family.

“The best course of action would be,” Bokuto slowly started, glancing nervously around the room before continuing. “To reassure our supporters while also gaining the support of as many neutral parties as possible.” A pause and quick glance to an encouraging Kuroo. “We should also strengthen our borders.” 

The headman smiled and gave a nod of approval, and Bokuto smiled sheepishly, then glanced towards Kuroo to see him looking back with an approving but teasing smirk. Bokuto scowled lightly at Kuroo, making Kuroo silently chuckle. 

The rest of the meeting dragged on as the head man detailed out the plan of action given by Bokuto. It took almost three hours for the meeting to come to an end, and when it did, Bokuto felt like his brain had all but melted out of his ears from spending the whole meeting having to frantically think of answers to the barrage of questions from the head man. When the head man dismissed everyone, he gave Bokuto one more “excellent work” as Bokuto and Kuroo left together. 

“This Jaguar person is something else,” Bokuto mused, clasping his hands behind his head and staring up at the ceiling as the two boys walked down the halls of the mansion to their rooms. “I wanna meet them. Whoever they are.”

“It’s probably better if you don’t,” Kuroo scoffed with a wicked smirk. “They’d probably break your arms.” 

“No way,” Bokuto retorted, dropping his arms and looking at Kuroo. “We both know I’m the best fighter out of everyone. I could take the Jaguar down easy.” 

“Sure, as long as he doesn’t send you into a tantrum with any kind of trash talk,” Kuroo teased.

“Shut up,  _ Tetsuro _ ,” Bokuto replied with a sarcastic undertone. Kuroo scowled.

“Stop, you know I hate being called by my first name.” 

“Why?” Bokuto egged on. “We should start calling each other by our first names. We’re basically brothers after all.” 

Kuroo absentmindedly rubbed his upper arm where the Leo family crest had been tattooed on his 16th birthday, and Bokuto pressed his palm over his heart where his own crest had been tattooed. The two boys walked in silence for a moment longer, the air between them growing more sullen by the second. Finally, Bokuto turned to Kuroo and frowned.

“Do you think we’re actually gonna go to war?” Bokuto asked. Kuroo turned to him and stared blankly a moment before giving a sigh.

“I don’t know. But if we do,” Kuroo slowly started. He looked forwards and bit the inside of his cheek. “It’s not going to end well.” 

_________

At the exact same time Bokuto was in the war room meeting, Akaashi was in the park, leaning against a giant tree hidden amongst other trees and bushes, his half-finished venti iced coffee in his hand. He took a sip and looked down at the rather large coffee stain on his shirt. Giving a giant sigh, he pulled down the hem of his shirt to get a better look at the stain and sighed again. 

“Akaashi.” Akaashi looked up at the sound of his name and let his shirt go. Walking towards him were his two friends, brothers really, both wearing jeans and hoodies. 

“Hey,” Akaashi said, standing up straight as they came up to him. 

“What happened to your shirt?” the shorter, blonde-haired one with his black roots showing asked, gesturing to the stain. 

“A guy bumped into me at the coffee shop and spilled my coffee,” Akaashi replied with a tired sigh. 

“Did you break his arms?” the other taller, box-blonde boy teased. “Mr. Jaguar?” 

“Please, Atsumu-san,” Akaashi laughed. “You know I hate that nickname.”

“Why?” Atsumu asked with his signature, shit-eating smirk. “The Jaguar is pretty cool.” 

“Because it makes me sound like a pimp that drives a Jaguar,” Akaashi replied with an exasperated sigh.

“Well,” Atsumu continued nonchalantly. “Would you rather have been called Mr. Cougar?” 

“No.” 

“Then Mr. Jaguar it is,” Atsumu replied with a victorious smirk. “So, did you break the guy who spilled coffee all over you’s arms?” 

“No,” Akaashi responded with a small roll of his eyes and cheeky, lop-sided smile. “He was actually very polite and bought me a new coffee.” Akaashi held up the ice coffee in his hands. 

“What was his name?” the blonde haired boy asked as he pulled his hoodie off. 

“Taro. No, Kenma-san, please stop,” Akaashi started, holding up his hand in a “stop” gesture and shaking his head. “It’s fine.” 

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, it’s really fine.”

“Just take it,” Atsumu insisted. “You’re not gonna get shot for borrowing a jacket from him.”

“I’d rather not risk it,” Akaashi quietly mumbled, staring down at the empty cup in his hand. 

“Akaashi,” Kenma pressed. “Nothing’s gonna happen to you. I promise. All the main family sons would turn against The Boss if anything happened to you.” 

“Yeah. Plus, you’re one of our best fighters and  _ the  _ Jaguar,” Atsumu added, slipping off his own hoodie and handing it to Akaashi. Atsumu straightened the black shirt he wore under his hoodie, part of his tattoo of the Leo family crest peaking through the top of his shirt. 

Kenma, Atsumu, and Akaashi belonged to the infamous Leo Family, the powerful yakuza family that ran West Tokyo. The boys didn’t just belong to the Leo Family, however, they also belonged to the main family, which consisted of The Boss, the direct descendants of the 6 other founding members, and all of their sons for a total of 14 main family members. And though the sons weren’t biologically related, they all considered each other brothers.

“It wouldn’t be hard to train another “Jaguar”,” Akaashi replied in a barely audible voice, placing his cup on the ground and taking the hoodie. “And Oikawa-san and Kageyama-san are better fighters and --” 

“Akaashi, seriously, stop,” Kenma interrupted, giving Akaashi a serious stare. “I swear to you, I’m going to protect you. You’re my brother. I won’t let The Boss hurt you.” 

“You’ve got me, the rest of our brothers,  _ and _ ,” Atsumu started. Then, he gestured to Kenma with a flourish wave of his arm. “The family’s heir backing you.”

“Okay, I’m sorry,” Akaashi conceded with a frown and sigh. “I’ll stop.” 

But Akaashi knew. Kenma and the rest of his brothers might have had his back, but The Boss definitely didn’t. Not anymore. Not since Akaashi’s father had privately protested to The Boss the appointment of Kenma, The Boss’s own son, to be the family heir. Akaashi’s father had said that Kenma lacked the confidence and charisma that the family boss needed to have, and The Boss had taken it as a personal insult. 

As punishment for speaking out, Akaashi’s father had to stand idly by while Akaashi, his only child and connection to his late wife, single-handedly undertook extremely dangerous missions. The Boss had told everyone that it was to train Akaashi to be the best scout, fighter, strategist, and intimidator for the family. But Akaashi and his brothers knew better. 

The boys helped Akaashi in any way that they could. Kenma even managed to change The Boss’s mind for several particularly dangerous missions that Akaashi was almost assigned. Unfortunately, Kenma couldn’t do much against missions that involved sending Akaashi into the Canis Family territory. Like the mission Akaashi had to complete that morning while the rest of the main family had had their meeting.

The Canis Family controlled East Tokyo and was the biggest threat to the Leo Family. Like the predatory dogs that the family had been named after, the Canis Family exerted their influence through powerful, alpha like displays of aggression. Their methods were in stark contrast to the Leo Family and added to the conflict. The two families had been enemies for so long, in fact, that no one really knew what had sparked the animosity in the first place. 

“How was the meeting this morning?” Akaashi asked to change the topic while picking up his empty cup. “Did I miss anything important?”

Kenma and Atsumu exchanged silent glances before both looking down at the ground. Akaashi furrowed his eyebrows and frowned at their reaction. Treading lightly, Akaashi pressed them both. 

“What’s going on?” Akaashi asked. 

“The Canis Family is growing bolder with their attempts to expand their territory,” Atsumu solemnly replied. “They’ve started to extend their influences to  _ our _ supporters and local businesses, and we’ve seen more of their scouts casing out the borders.” 

“And,” Kenma slowly added, giving Akaashi a worried look before glancing away. “Our scouts reported back that they’ve been recruiting like crazy since the start of the year.” 

“Oh,” Akaashi breathed, unable to form any other coherent response to the troubling news. 

“Yeah.” 

There was a suspenseful pause, and Akaashi stared at the ground with his eyebrows furrowed in deep, deep concern. Then, Kenma said something that made Akaashi’s blood run cold. “The Boss wants us all to start prepping for....”

“But it’s just prep,” Atsumu quickly interrupted in response to the shocked look on Akaashi’s face. “These things happen every now and then, and it doesn’t always end in…” 

Though no one had said it out loud, the word “war” hung heavily in the air as a tense silence fell among the three. In the last war, the heads of both families had been assassinated, and Akaashi had lost his mother. It took years for both families to recover, and there was no guarantee that the Leo Family could win. Especially since they had only been able to identify 2 out of the 7 Canis main family’s boys, and that neither of those boys appeared to be the Canis Family’s successor. 

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” Kenma finally said, giving Akaashi a small and reassuring smile. “Like Atsumu said, these things happen all the time, so there’s a good chance nothing will come of it.” 

“Yeah,” Atsumu agreed with a reassuring smile of his own. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” 

“Right,” Akaashi replied, forcing as best a smile as he could despite the anxiety and fear inside of him. “No use in worrying over something that hasn’t happened yet.” 

“Exactly.” Then, Atsumu glanced around before looking between Akaashi and Kenma. Giving a sheepish chuckle, Atsumu suggested, “But maybe we should get out of Canis territory before someone sees us.” 

“Right,” Akaashi agreed, trailing behind the two boys as they turned to walk away. “Kenma-san, did you still wanna head to that video game shop at the edge of the boundary?” 

“Yeah,” Kenma responded with a small smile, slipping his hands into his hoodie pocket. A moment of silence passed as the three Leo Family boys walked out of the park before Atsumu turned to Akaashi and smirked. 

“Did you hit your mark?” Akaashi pursed his lips and hummed before turning to Atsumu and giving a small, sly smile.

“I’d say that Congressman Yoshida doesn’t have much to  _ stand _ for anymore.” 


	2. The Scarf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had been two months since Bokuto (known to Akaashi as Taro) and Akaashi (known to Bokuto as Keishi) first ran into each other at the coffee shop. During that time, tensions continue to rise between the Leo and Canis families. As the weather turned from fall to winter, Bokuto and Akaashi both wondered what the snowfall would bring.

The late November air was crisp and heavy, and, as Bokuto walked down the sidewalk to the coffee shop, he pulled his coat and red scarf tighter around him while looking up into the overcast sky. His breath came out in wispy clouds, and he imagined that it would start snowing soon despite the weather report saying otherwise. He smiled at the thought of a white winter, and he let himself daydream of a peaceful morning where he could sleep into the afternoon and have hot chocolate when he woke up while snow flurried outside his window. But his daydream was stark in contrast to what he knew would be a more realistic morning--him waking up in a bunker while a war raged outside. 

Since the war room meeting almost two months ago, the tensions between the Leo Family and Canis Family families grew exponentially. The Canis Family scouts reported a few weeks back that the Leo Family group had begun to recruit scores of new members, and, all the while, the Jaguar continued to take out powerful Canis Family supporters. A task force had been created to identify and stop the Jaguar, but, despite all the resources allocated for the task, no one had been able to uncover their identity. Even more frustrating was the fact that the Leo Family had managed to keep all their main family’s sons hidden deep in the shadows and away from the Canis Family’s scouts.

Bokuto pushed those thoughts into the farthest corner of his mind, letting his daydream of a peaceful morning fill his head. A few minutes later, when the coffee shop came into view, Bokuto gave a deep sigh. He held onto his daydream for just a moment longer before letting it go as he reached the doors of the coffee shop. When he opened the door, the smell of roasted coffee beans hit his senses and the sounds of coffee bean grinders resounded all around him. He stepped inside, savoring the warmth of the shop as he started to feel his fingers, toes, and cheeks again. 

The door closed behind him with a soft thud, and he walked to the back of the line, glancing around at the other patrons in the shop. Then, his eyes fell onto a familiar figure sitting in the corner of the shop, facing the door and typing on a laptop. It was Keishi who, unbeknownst to Bokuto, was actually Akaashi, one of the sons of the Leo Family’s main family. 

Keishi (Akaashi) wore a grey beanie and black sweatshirt, and tufts of his curly black hair stuck out from under the edges of the beanie. But what really caught Bokuto’s attention was how both handsome and cute Keishi looked wearing black, thick-rimmed glasses. Bokuto took in Keishi’s features and smiled warmly to himself, his heart skipping a beat and a heat permeating his entire body. 

Then, suddenly, Bokuto furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Keishi had told him the first time they met that Keishi only “happened to be in the area” when Keishi stopped into the coffee shop, which suggested to Bokuto that Keishi would very rarely if ever visit the coffee shop again. So, then, was it just a coincidence that, two months after the fact, Keishi and Bokuto would just so happened to be at the same coffee shop at the same time once again? Could it truly be just a coincidence?

Those thoughts raced through Bokuto’s mind at a dizzying speed, and he debated with himself whether he should go and talk to the man or not. But, in that moment, Keishi glanced up from his computer, looked back down, did a double take, and immediately locked eyes with Bokuto. Keishi looked absolutely stunned with wide eyes and a slightly agape mouth, and Bokuto couldn’t help but chuckle at Keishi’s expression. Slowly a small smile crept onto Keishi’s lips, and he raised his hand in a “hello”. Before Bokuto knew it, he was heading towards the man, smiling and waving back. 

“Hi,” Keishi said as Bokuto walked up to his table. Keishi closed his laptop and leaned his forearms over it as he smiled softly up at Bokuto. “Nice to see you again.”

“Same here,” Bokuto chuckled. Then, Bokuto warrily questioned, “Keishi, right? I thought you said you didn’t live nearby?” 

“Yes. And I don’t. Not really,” Keishi replied with a smile. “But I enjoyed the atmosphere the last time I was here and the coffee, so I’ve actually been back a few times since then.”

“Oh,” Bokuto replied, silently cursing himself for how paranoid the last two months had made him. “But I’m glad you liked it last time, this is one of my favorite coffee shops in the area.” 

“Yeah, it is really nice,” Keishi said with a grin. “Kind of like a hidden gem.” 

“It really is,” Bokuto replied the biggest, brightest, and stupidest smile gracing his lips. 

“But,” Keishi started. “If you’re here to spill coffee on me again, do you think you could give me a heads up? I only have hot coffee right now, and I’d rather not get a 3rd degree burn.”

“Right,” Bokuto replied with a sheepish chuckle. “I’ll try to keep that in mind. Sorry again.” 

“It’s fine. I’m only teasing” Keishi replied with a smile. An awkward moment of silence settled between the two men as they both glanced away at the same time, then looked back at each other again at the same time. 

“Can I--” 

“Do you--” Keishi and Bokuto started at the same time. They both clamped their mouths shut and paused for a moment before Bokuto started laughing and Keishi chuckling. 

“You first,” Bokuto said, gesturing to Keishi. 

“I was going to ask if you wanted to sit?” Keish replied, pointing at the empty chair in front of him. Bokuto smiled. 

“I’d like that.” Bokuto pulled out the chair slightly and shrugged off his coat. He hung it on the back of the chair and placed his scarf on top of it before letting Keishi know that he was going to get a drink first. 

Bokuto returned to the table a few minutes later with a cup of hot chocolate, and found Keishi scrolling through his phone, his laptop still closed in front of him. When Bokuto sat down, Keishi looked up from your phone, smiled at him, then placed his phone face down on the table. 

“What did you get?” Keishi asked, folding his hands in front of him. Bokuto set his cup carefully down onto the table and took a seat before answering. 

“Hot chocolate,” Bokuto casually responded, taking a tentative sip of the steaming drink. 

“You come to a coffee shop for hot chocolate?” Keishi asked with a small smirk. 

“Yes, yes I do,” Bokuto responded resolutely, setting down his drink. “They have the milk frothing machine that makes the hot chocolate taste better.” 

“Ah, yes,” Keishi laughed, resting his chin in the palm of his hand. “The “milk frothing machine”.”

“Exactly.” 

“You sound like my brother, Taro-san,” Keishi started, sitting back in his chair and taking a sip of his own drink. “He prefers sweets over pretty much anything.” 

“Oh, wow,” Bokuto laughed, trying to shake off the initial jar from Keishi using Bokuto’s alias name. “That’s the total opposite of my brother. He has the taste buds of an old man.” 

“Really? How so?” 

“Well, his favorite foods are usually made with medicinal herbs, he only drinks black coffee, and, on his last birthday, he insisted on having plain, grilled mackerel instead of steak or chicken.”

“Why?” Keishi laughed. 

“Because “fish is easier to digest than red meats or poultry”,” Bokuto replied in an exaggeratedly deeper voice, clearly mocking his brother.

“Sounds like you guys are polar opposites.” 

“Same to you and your brother,” Bokuto laughed. 

“We can be,” Akaashi amusedly replied. “When we were younger, he would always get in trouble for sneaking sweets to bed. Eventually he got banned from the kitchen after dinner and asked me to steal candy for him.” 

“Oh god,” Bokuto chuckled. “The same thing happened to me except my brother would sneak sweet just to eat them in front of me.” 

“I would have gotten into trouble if I did that to him,” Akaashi quietly replied, looking down at his laptop with a small smile. Then, he looked back up to Bokuto and chuckled. “But that didn’t stop me from making sure that his candy wrappers would magically appear in his bed the next morning.”

Bokuto laughed, earning a smile from Keishi, and the two men exchanged more stories about their quirky brothers. The whole while, Bokuto had to keep reminding himself to be careful about how much information he was disclosing and which stories would be okay to tell. 

But, as the conversation continued, Bokuto found himself more and more entranced by Keishi’s every being. From the way his nose crinkled when he laughed to the way he sipped his drink and adjusted his glasses when they would slip down his nose. All of it put Bokuto at ease in a way that he hadn’t felt in a very long time. And, the longer he spent with Keishi, the more Bokuto felt like he had stepped into a different life. A life one where he could fall for a stranger in a coffee shop and not have to worry about them being an enemy. 

Seconds turned into minutes that stretched into hours and, before Bokuto knew it, the sun had already set. He was in the middle of the story of when he nearly broke his neck doing a backflip that his brother had dared him to do when one of the coffee shop employees announced a “last call” for all coffee orders. 

“Oh, jeeze,” Bokuto mumbled, fishing his phone out of his pocket. “What time is it?” When he saw the time, his eyebrows shot up and his eyes widened in shock. “It is 9:15pm.” 

“Shit,” Keishi breathed, quickly picking up his own phone off the table and checking it. 

Bokuto smirked at the quiet curse then turned his attention back to his phone. There were many, many missed calls and texts from “Bedhead” as well as his other brothers, including one very explicit and angry text from his one brother dutifully named “Mommy-chan”. It was only then that Bokuto realized that he had been so caught up in his conversation with Keishi that he hadn’t noticed his phone going off at all 

Glancing quickly up at Keishi, Bokuto saw that the man was staring at his phone with furrowed eyebrows and a similarly shocked expression on his face. Bokuto smiled to himself at the sight before opening the message. 

_ I swear to fucking god, Bokuto, if you missed this meeting because you were at the arcade AGAIN, I will beat your ass and dance on your grave _ \-- Mommy-chan. Bokuto grimaced at the threat. 

Bokuto had missed the strategy planning meeting with his brothers that was scheduled for over an hour ago. Thankfully, the meeting was only with his brothers and not the Canis Family head, or else Bokuto might as well have moved into a safe house for the rest of the week. 

_ I wasn’t! I swear, I just lost track of time running errands _ \-- Bokuto. A second later, Bokuto got a response. 

_ Right.  _ \-- Mommy-chan.

_ Iwa, I promise. I didn’t do it on purpose  _ \-- Bokuto. 

_ Just get your ass back here. Daichi and Ushijima are about ready to send a search party out for you, and Aran and I were gearing up to follow them _ \-- Mommy-chan. 

_ I’m okay, you don’t have to do that. I’m on my way back right now, just give me like 15 min _ \-- Bokuto.

_ Make it 10 --  _ Mommy-chan.

“I should get going,” Keishi suddenly said, courting Bokuto’s attention. “My brothers are going to kill me.” Bokuto looked up and saw Keishi quickly placing his backpack on the table that, apparently, had been hanging off the back of his chair the whole time. 

“You have more than one brother?” Bokuto questioned, silently kicking himself for feeling so suspicious again after having spent hours talking so casually and comfortably with the man.

“Yeah, actually,” Keishi replied with a sheepish grin, slipping his laptop into his backpack and zipping it up. “I have two, one older and one younger. The younger one is the one with the childlike-taste buds.” 

“Ah, makes sense,” Bokuto responded, shoving away his paranoia. “Maybe you can bring him here and help him grow out of that?”

“If I can ever get him to stop playing his video games,” Keishi chuckled. 

Keishi stood from the table and slung his backpack onto his back, and Bokuto stood with him, slipping on his winter coat and wrapping the scarf around his neck. The two men made their ways out of the coffee shop, and, when the biting cold, night air burst onto Bokuto’s face, he felt as though he was suddenly ripped out of a dream. But, when he looked at Keishi and saw him smiling back at him, Bokuto felt himself dip back into that dream.

“Aren’t you cold?” Bokuto asked Keishi when he realized that the man was only wearing a hoodie and beanie. 

“Maybe a little,” Keishi laughed, a visible shiver running through his body. “I wasn’t planning to stay out this late, so I didn’t bring a coat.” 

“Oh,” Bokuto whispered, suddenly feeling very guilty. 

“Don’t worry about it, though,” Keishi interjected, giving a reassuring smile. “I don’t live terribly far away, so it’ll be fine.” Bokuto watched Keishi for a moment, then took off his scarf and held it out to him. “Oh, no, it’s fine, really.” 

“I think you should work on letting people be nice to you,” Bokuto laughed, wrapping his scarf around Keishi’s neck. 

Bokuto adjusted it slightly to ensure that it would keep out the cold as best as possible, and gave a short, approving nod when he had finished. And when he glanced at Keishi’s face, he immediately noticed the blush on his cheeks, illuminated only by the lights from the coffee shop. At the sight, Bokuto felt a burning heat crawl up his neck and onto his face and ears. 

“Thanks,” Keishi muttered with a small smile, gingerly running his fingers over the scarf. 

“No problem,” Bokuto replied as he cleared his throat. Then, before he knew it or could stop himself, Bokuto added, “It looks good on you.” 

When the words came out of his mouth, Bokuto felt the heat on his face intensify like the radiance of a thousand suns. Thankfully, though, Keishi seemed too preoccupied with his own darkening blush to notice how uncomfortable Bokuto had gotten. 

“I guess I’ll see you around then?” Keishi said after an awkward moment of silence. Bokuto gave a small smile. 

“I’d like that.” A pause. “We should exchange numbers.” 

And it was in that moment that Bokuto realized he really, really needed to stop and think about what he was saying lest he pass out from all the blood rushing to his face. Once again, though, Keishi was too busy looking away and trying to calm his own burning face to notice.

“Okay,” Keishi quietly responded, taking out his phone from his pocket. “What’s your number? I’ll text you mine.” 

Bokuto gave Keishi his number, and Keishi immediately texted Bokuto his. Afterwards, both men gave their goodbyes and went their separate ways. 

The lights from the lamp posts illuminated Bokuto’s walk down the sidewalk towards the Canis Family mansion. He reminisced about his entire conversation with Keishi, letting his mind fill with the memories of his laughter and voice until Bokuto could all but hear it ringing in his ears. 

Suddenly, Bokuto’s phone vibrated, and he took it out to see that “Bedhead” was calling. He stared at the caller ID for a moment, holding onto his thoughts of Keishi for just a second longer before letting them fall away and resuming his life as the successor to the Canis Family.

“Hey,” Bokuto said into the phone.

“Where are you? You missed the meeting, is everything okay?” came Kuroo’s annoyed but concerned response.

“I’m fine. I just lost track of time while getting coffee,” Bokuto sighed. “You don’t have to scold me, Iwa already did.”

“Is that why he was so pissy just now?”

“Probably,” Bokuto laughed. 

“Figures.” A pause. “Why did you miss the meeting, though? Did you meet a guy or something?” Kuroo teased. Silence. Then. “Holy fuck, did you  _ actually _ !?” 

“Maybe,” Bokuto responded with a smirk, his thoughts instantly flooded again with images of Keishi. 

“Who?! What?! What’s his name!?” 

“Keishi.” Bokuto looked up to the night sky and, as he stared at the moon, he saw snow start to drift down to the earth. “His name is Keishi.”

________

“Hey, Akaashi,” Kenma’s voice sounded in Akaashi’s ear through his phone. “Is everything okay? You were supposed to be back a couple hours ago.” 

“Everything’s fine,” Akaashi reassured. “Sorry for worrying you.” 

“It’s okay, but you should really apologize to Suga and Oikawa. They were freaking out the most.” 

“Right,” Akaashi chuckled. “Sorry again.”

“Like I said. It’s okay.” A pause. “Did you get any info about Mr. Rooster?” 

“No,” Akaashi dejectedly sighed. 

The Leo Family family boss had sent Akaashi out on another mission that day, which is why he was in the Canis Family territory once more. Lately, The Boss had been sending Akaashi out to do reconnaissance and scouting missions, citing Akaashi’s ability to “move in the shadows” as the reason why he was sending  _ Akaashi _ , instead of the other scouts, to gather information about the Canis Family main family’s boys. 

This “Mr. Rooster” that Akaashi was looking into was rumored to be one of the Canis Family’s main sons. A Leo Family scout had noticed the man leaving a little-known, underground shark den that the Canis Family used to launder money. But what caught the scout’s attention was the unusually heavy entourage that followed the man. The scout managed to snap a picture, and Akaashi and his brothers dubbed the man “Mr. Rooster” because of the way the man’s hair stuck up in strange places like a rooster.

“Did something happen?” Kenma asked, a twinge of worry in his voice.

“Not… exactly,” Keishi started, feeling a blush creeping onto his cheeks as he touched the scarf around his neck. “I just lost track of time at a coffee shop.” 

“What, were you on a date or something!” came a faint shout over the phone. 

“Was that Atsumu-san?” Akaashi asked, quirking an eyebrow. “Am I on speaker?” 

“Yeah,” came Atsumu’s louder and clearer voice. 

“Sorry,” Kenma mumbled. “He was in the room with me.” 

“Don’t be shy, Akaashi, tell us,” Atsumu interrupted in a teasing tone. “Was he handsome? Was he a good kisser? Come on, tell us all the spicy details.” Silence. Then. “Wait, wait, wait. Holy shit. Stop. Were you _actually_ on a date!?” 

“No,” Akaashi replied, unable to stop the smile creeping onto his lips as his thoughts fluttered back to the coffee shop. “I just ran into that guy again at the coffee shop.”

“The one who spilled coffee on you last time?” Kenma asked.

“Yeah, him.” 

“What, did he spill coffee on you again?” Atsumu teased. 

“No,” Akaashi chuckled. “We just talked.”

“What was his name again?” Atsumu pressed, excitement and glee rising in his tone.

“Taro.” 

As Akaashi said the name, he looked up to the sky and watched as snow started to flurry to the ground like sakura petals in spring to signal the start of the new season of rebirth and beginnings. 


	3. Dreaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It didn't take long for Akaashi (still known to Bokuto as Keishi) and Bokuto (still know to Akaashi as Taro) to grow closer and closer. It was a dream, really. A dream that distracted them from the hellish nightmare brewing between their two families. But, as desperately as they hoped that dream would never end, the cold truth of reality was: Dreams only last for a night.

As the weeks turned into months, the weather grew colder and more bitter, much like the relations between the Canis Family and Leo Family. Both sides were bolstering their numbers with new recruits, and squabbles along the territory boundaries became more frequent. Worst of all, the heads of both families had ordered the main family’s sons to extensively limit their public appearances and to begin serious combat training. As the days passed, the threat of war grew more real and more imminent, and it struck fear and worry into the hearts of all members of both families. 

And yet, despite all this, Akaashi and Bokuto found themselves growing closer and closer to each other. Messages were exchanged nearly every minute of every day, and clandestine coffee meetings sooned turned into clandestine coffee dates. It was dangerous, they both knew. Akaashi venturing into Canis territory every week, and Bokuto risking Akaashi being seen by the Leo Family with every meeting.

But, despite the rising tensions and fears, Bokuto and Akaashi relished their time together, using it as a way to escape from the chaos caused by the now inevitable war. It distracted Akaashi from the impossibly dangerous missions his family’s head had been sending him on. And it comforted Bokuto from the growing pressures and fears of being trained to become the Canis family head, a duty that had become more urgent should Bokuto’s father, the current family head, be killed in the war. 

When he was with Akaashi, Bokuto felt at peace in both mind and body. When Akaashi was with Bokuto, he felt safe and secure. And, as the love between the two continued to grow, they both pretended that they lived different lives where they would both be safe and where they both could be the normal people that they had convinced themselves they were. 

But those weren’t the lives they led, and reality was never kind to those stuck in dreams.

________

“Are you sure about this, Bokuto?” Kuroo asked, his words laced with worry. “Things aren’t exactly safe for us right now, you know that right?” 

“Trust me, I am _painfully_ aware of how unsafe things are right now,” Bokuto replied in a somber tone. “Especially for us.” 

“Then maybe you should just wait until things cool down a bit. I mean, we _just_ got word that two of our scouts got maimed at the border,” Kuroo said with a hint of pleading in his voice. “Tell Keishi you’re busy with work or something, I’m sure he’ll understand.” 

Bokuto stood shirtless in front of the mirror on his closet door, and Kuroo sat on the edge of Bokuto’s bed. They had both just gotten out of an emergency strategy meeting with their other brothers, and Bokuto was exhausted from the intensity and complexity of all the plans they had come up with in response to their scouts having been targeted. All Bokuto wanted was to forget it all and escape into that perfect life he had made up for Keishi and himself. 

“It’ll be okay,” Bokuto said, staring at the Canis Family family insignia tattooed over his heart. “We’re gonna be staying at the safehouse.” 

Said “safehouse” was actually an apartment unit in a gated duplex, deep within the boundaries of the Canis Family territory. Bokuto had strategically chosen that complex about a year ago because of its gated access and because of how conspicuous the location was for a safehouse. He and Kuroo were the only two Canis Family members who knew about the safehouse, and it was listed under Bokuto’s aliases “Taro”. So far, the two boys had only used it as an occasional getaway from family affairs. 

“But still,” Kuroo continued warrily. “You should at least let someone escort you there and back.” 

“You mean _you_ wanna escort me there and “unexpectedly” show up just so you can meet Keishi,” Bokuto replied with a smirk. Kuroo gave a sweet and innocent smile while shaking his head. 

“How dare you think I would do something like that.” 

“Yeah, nice try,” Bokuto laughed. “If I even think that you’re anywhere near the safehouse this weekend I’m going to tell Ushijima that it was _you_ who got him “accidentally” locked in the training room with that new recruit Tendou.” 

“Fine fine,” Kuroo conceded with a feigned sigh. “I’ll leave your lover’s retreat alone.” 

“Good.”

“But, I gotta ask,” Kuroo started with a smirk. “How do you plan on hiding _that_?” 

Kuroo pointed at the reflection of Bokuto’s Canis Family insignia. It was nearly identical to Kuroo’s, except Bokuto’s had the roman numeral V, indicating him as the future 5th leader of the Canis Family. 

Kuroo paused a moment before continuing, “I’m assuming you guys are gonna sleep together at some point this weekend, and you haven’t exactly told Keishi that you not only belong to the Canis Family, but are also our heir.” 

“I’m working on it,” Bokuto sighed. Giving the tatoo one last look, he opened his closet door and rummaged through his clothes until he found a black t-shirt. “I could always just lie and tell him that I’m waiting for marriage.” Kuroo laughed at that. 

“Right. Because you’re definitely the Virgin Mary reincarnated,” Kuroo said with an incredulous smirk. “You can’t honestly believe that you’re gonna be able to stop yourself from sleeping with your boyfriend of, what, two months now?” 

“Three,” Bokuto quietly corrected with a small smile as he pulled the t-shirt over his head. “And you never know until you try.” 

“Yeah, sure. Lemme know how that works out for you,” Kuroo retorted with a wicked smirk. “I mean, it’s not like this would be the _first_ time you guys would be sleeping together since the start of your relationship. And I’m _sure_ you’ve told him already that you’re “waiting for marriage” to, you know, be “upfront” about it.” 

“You know,” Bokuto started, turning to face Kuroo with a small scowl. “I think Iwa could use your help training the new recruits on how to load and fire their weapons.” 

“Nah,” Kuroo replied with a smirk. “The last time I tried to help I scared Iwa half to death by loading a pistol with some blanks and shooting it at one of the newbies who pissed me off. I think his name was Lev?” 

“Right,” Bokuto laughed, turning back into his closet and flipping through the clothes. “I forgot about that.” 

Bokuto took out a small duffle bag from his closet and shoved several shirts and jeans into the bag before dropping it to the floor. The whole while, he could feel Kuroo’s burning stare on his back while a tense silence filled the room. 

“Maybe you should take your gun, just to be safe,” Kuroo suggested. Bokuto turned to face him and frowned. 

“Because normal people just carry around concealed weapons all the time.” 

“Bokuto.” 

“It’ll be fine,” Bokuto insisted. Though, he wasn’t sure if he was trying to reassure Kuroo or himself. “We’re gonna be at my safe house, and it’s in the middle of our territory.” 

“You never know.” 

“What, do you not trust Keishi?” Bokuto asked with a smirk, trying to calm his growing nerves. 

“It’s not that,” Kuroo started, looking down at his feet. “I just…” 

Kuroo continued to stare at the ground in silence, but Bokuto could see it all written on Kuroo’s face. It was the same face Kuroo had whenever any of his and Bokuto’s brothers went out on missions by themselves. It was a face that Kuroo learned after his mother’s murder. Fear. Fear of death and fear of losing someone else in his family.

“If it makes you feel better,” Bokuto suggested with a soft smile. “I’ll bring that knife you gave me on my birthday.” 

Kuroo looked up to Bokuto and stared blankly for a moment before giving a small smile and nodding. “Thanks.” 

Bokuto nodded back and moved to the dresser by his bed where an ornate, lacquer box sat. He stared at the box a moment, briefly regretting his suggestion, before taking a deep breath and opening the box to reveal a deadly, tactical knife. The blade itself sheened a blinding white under the light and, when seen with the jet-black leather handle, it looked almost like the razor sharp and immensely powerful teeth of a wolf. 

Bokuto gingerly picked up the blade and turned it over in hand, his reflection flashing across the surface. He stared for a moment longer before opening the top drawer of his dresser and taking out the leather sheath of the blade. Slowly and carefully, Bokuto sheathed the weapon and turned back to Kuroo. 

“All good?” Bokuto asked, holding up the blade and smiling. Kuroo smiled and nodded. 

“Yeah.” 

“Good.” 

Bokuto moved back to his duffle bag and slid the blade underneath his clothes. Afterwards, he started to rummage through his closet again and pulled out a dark-blue, long sleeve button down. He slipped the button down onto his arms and over his shoulders and started to button it up when Kuoo finally spoke again. 

“Be careful, Bokuto. Not just for your sake.” 

“Yeah,” Bokuto quietly replied as finished buttoning up his shirt. “I know.” 

Bokuto knew the risks of having Keishi come over to his safehouse for the weekend. If anyone saw him and/or knew that he was meeting with Bokuto, Keishi would become an easy target for the Leo Family family. And Bokuto would rather die before letting anything happen to him. 

________

“This isn’t a good idea, Akaashi,” Kenma warned. “You know it isn’t.” 

“Yeah,” Atsumu agreed. “You’re putting a lot of trust in someone you’ve known for like two months.” 

“Three,” Akaashi quietly corrected. 

“Oh, my bad, _three_ . That makes us feel _so_ much better.” Akaashi gave Atsumu a tired scowl, but Atsumu unwaveringly stared Akaashi down. 

Akaashi stood bare chested over his overnight bag with a black t-shirt in his hand, while Atsumu and Kenma both sat on his bed. The three men were talking about Akaashi’s planned trip to visit Taro for the weekend, and Akaashi’s two brothers were less than happy about it. 

Giving a deep sigh, Akaashi broke eye contact with Atsumu and turned to the body mirror hanging on the wall beside the dresser. He looked at his reflection and took in the shadows under his eyes from a sleepless night of thinking about his weekend with Taro. Akaashi was excited about the weekend, no doubt, but he was also extremely nervous about spending an entire weekend deep within Canis territory with no backup. 

“I know it’s a bad idea. I just --” Akaashi stopped, unsure of what to say next. 

His eyes then moved to his ribs where the Leo Family crest was tattooed into the skin. It was the same tattoo that united Akaashi with all of his brothers and, normally, he would have looked at it with pride. But, this weekend, the tattoo might as well have been a scarlet letter, clearly marking Akaashi as an unwelcome and unwanted guest in the Canis Family territory. 

“Akaashi,” Kenma quietly pressed. “Please? A couple hours in their territory is one thing, but a whole weekend?” 

“You’re always going on about me not thinking my decisions through,” Atsumu accused, crossing his arms and frowning. “What do you think you’re doing right now?” 

“I know, I know, I just--” Akaashi sighed, turning back to face his brothers and slipping his shirt over his head. “I need to see him. Please.” 

“Why?” 

“Because.” 

Kenma and Atsumu stared expectantly at Akaashi, and Akaashi avoided their gazes by staring solemnly at the ground. Akashi had almost gotten killed on his latest mission, and he knew that The Boss was disappointed that he wasn’t. And Akaashi was also sure that The Boss would be sending him on an even more dangerous mission next, and that no one, not even Kenma, would be able to change The Boss’s mind about it. So, while Akaashi waited for his inevitable death sentence, all he desperately wanted was to spend as much time feeling safe and loved with Taro, even if it meant sneaking into Canis Family territory to do it. 

“Please don’t make me pull my rank on you as the heir, Akaashi,” Kenma quietly pleaded. Akaashi turned towards him and frowned while Kenma continued. “I don’t care about what The Boss thinks or wants. I just don’t want to lose you or any of my brothers.” 

“You won’t lose me,” Akaashi murmured, trying his best to give Kenma a reassuring smile. 

“Right,” Atsumu spat, standing up and stalking towards Akaashi. “Because, you know, if the Canis Family finds you they definitely _won’t_ kill you on the spot, and that definitely _won’t_ kick start this goddamn war.”

“It won’t,” Akaashi replied before he could stop himself. 

Akaashi watched as Atsumu’s face flushed red from anger, and Atsumu grabbed Akaashi by the front of his shirt. But Akaashi’s instincts, ingrained in him through years of training, immediately kicked in and, in one foul swoop, Atsumu found himself lying face down on the ground with his arm twisted behind his back. 

“Shit,” Akaashi breathed, instantly releasing Atsumu and stumbling back a few steps. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” 

“Geeze,” Atsumu groaned, flipping over and sitting on his butt while looking up at Akaashi. All traces of anger seemed to have vanished and was instead replaced by embarrassment and annoyance. “Glad to know your hand-to-hand is still the best.” 

“Sorry,” Akaashi apologized once more, holding out a hand to Atsumu. Atsumu took it and Akaashi easily hoisted the boy up while Kenma watched in amusement. 

“Let’s try this again,” Atsumu started with a sigh. He walked over to the wall and leaned against it next to the body mirror before crossing his arms and looking to Akaashi. “How do you think the Canis Family is going to react if they find out that one of the Leo Family’s sons is sneaking around in their territory? Or, worse, how do you think they’ll react if they found out you're a son _and_ the Jaguar?” 

“They won’t find out,” Akaashi solemnly replied. “I’ll make sure of it.”

And it was the truth. As gruesome as it was, Akaashi and all of his brothers learned how to disintegrate their tattoos using an acid capsule that they all had built into their phones. It would take mere seconds for the acid to remove all traces of the Leo Family’s crest, and Akaashi and all his brothers always had their phones somewhere on their person.

Moreover, after the Leo Family family had learned of the Canis Family’s nickname for Akaashi, the Leo family boss made sure to keep Akaashi’s identity as hidden as possible. As a result, The Boss also forced Akaashi to learn how to end his own life should he ever be caught, kidnapped, or questioned by the enemy. It was all part of a carefully crafted plan by the Boss to ensure that the legacy of the “Jaguar” would live on, no matter who held the title.

“And The Boss wouldn’t exactly shed a tear if I happened to turn up dead,” Akaashi quietly added. “So, no war on my behalf.” 

A tense silence filled the room at Akaashi’s words. Kenma and Atsumu both knew Akaashi was right and, as much as they hated it, they both knew that nothing they said would change the fact that The Boss wanted Akaashi gone. It was a fate that Akaashi had long since accepted but that his brothers still had trouble coming to terms with. 

“Can you at least tell us where you’re going in case you need backup?” Kenma insisted, breaking the silence. Akaashi looked at him and sighed.

“If that would make you feel better, then, okay.” 

“Not really, but it’s a start,” Atsumu muttered not so quietly under his breath. 

Akaashi scowled lightly at him as he took his phone out of his pocket and texted Kenma the address to, what he didn’t know was, Taro’s safehouse. When Kenma’s phone pinged, Kenma took it out, read the text, then looked at Akaashi and smiled. 

“Thanks.” 

“You’re bringing your gun, right?” Atsumu suddenly asked. Akaashi furrowed his eyebrows and frowned. “Akaashi, you can’t be serious.” 

“I’ll bring my knife,” Akaashi countered. Atsumu narrowed his eyes at Akaashi but, ultimately, relented. 

“The big one.” 

“The discrete one.” 

“Akaashi.” 

“It’s either the discrete one or no knife.” 

“Fine,” Atsumu exasperatedly sighed. “The discrete one then.” 

Akaashi smirked at Atsumu’s frustration then moved to his desk next to his bed. He opened the top drawer and took out a sleek but deadly looking blade. It was about the length of half of Akaashi’s forearm and, when Akaashi unsheathed it, the black metal gleamed under the light like the gleam in a cat’s eyes right before it pounced for the kill. It wasn’t Akaashi’s favorite weapon, truthbetold, but it was the weapon he used most often, and it was the most comfortable in wielding during a fight.

“It’ll be okay,” Akaashi said in as best a reassuring tone as he could while sheathing the blade and turning to his brothers. “I’ll be okay.” 

The tension in the room seemed to lift ever so slightly as Akaashi packed the knife into his duffle bag and zipped it up. Kenma and Atsumu tried once more to convince Akaashi not to go, but Akaashi was unrelenting. Before he left, he slipped on a grey button down, grabbed Taro’s scarf, said his goodbyes to his brothers, and promised to use the panic code if anything came up. 

______

 _Let me know when you get to the gate, and I’ll come get you_ \-- Taro (Bokuto). 

_Sounds good, I should be there soon_ \-- Keishi (Akaashi). 

As Akaashi walked along the sidewalk, his boots crunching in the snow from the previous night, Bokuto sat restlessly in his safehouse. Both of their minds were filled with worry and anxiety. Bokuto thought of Akaashi’s safety, praying that he would make it to him and not be ambushed along the way by Leo Family scouts while Akaashi worried about being attacked by the Canis Family family. And, above all else, Akaashi and Bokuto both racked their brains for ideas on how they both would conceal their identities from one another while spending the whole weekend together. 

“Calm, down, it’s gonna be fine,” Bokuto repeated to himself as he paced back and forth in the kitchen. 

“Just breathe, nothing’s gonna happen,” Akaashi muttered under his breath, running his fingers over Bokuto’s scarf around his neck as he tried to calm his racing heart. 

The time it took for Akaashi to reach the safehouse’s gates and for Bokuto to get Akaashi’s “I’m here” text was excruciatingly long and stressful. But the moment the two saw each other all those fears and anxieties melted away and were replaced by a love-filled safety and peace. 

“Hey,” Bokuto quietly said with a relieved smile as Akaashi stepped through the gate. “Did you find this place okay?” 

“I did,” Akaashi replied with his own relieved smile. Bokuto leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to Akaashi’s lips before taking his duffle bag, snaking his arm around his waist, and leading him to the apartment. 

Along the way, Akaashi threw stealthy glances all around, taking in his surroundings in an instance and noting every movement in his field of view. Unbeknownst to him, Bokuto was doing the exact same thing. It wasn’t until the both of them stood behind the locked door of Bokuto’s safehouse that the tension in their bodies fully released and their minds felt at ease. 

“Oh wow,” Akaashi mused, walking into the apartment and taking in the surprisingly homey, almost teenage girl-like aesthetic of the place. “This is uhm--… “ Akaashi turned to Bokuto and gave an amused smile, “unexpected?”. 

“Yeah,” Bokuto sheepishly chuckled as Akaashi moved into the living room and looked at the far wall covered in with fairylights. “My brother decorated the place. He thought it’d be funny to put up fairylights in a guy’s apartment.”

“Right,” Akaashi chuckled. “Your _brother_ did.” 

“He did!” Bokuto laughed. “I swear, it was all him.”

“Does your brother live here with you?” Akaashi asked, walking around the living room and stopping in front of a painting of a pack of dogs running across a grassy hill. But as Akaashi stared at the painting, he felt an uneasiness creep into his heart and the hairs on the back of his neck stand on edge.

“Oh. No,” Bokuto laughed, setting Akaashi’s duffle bag onto the kitchen counter before quickly moving into the living room and to Akaashi’s side to pull Akaashi’s attention away from the painting. All the while, Bokuto silently cursed himself for not having put the painting away. “He just wanted to decorate my place because he thought it was too plain. He found that painting at a garage sale and thought it looked cool.”

“He sounds interesting,” Akaashi chuckled, looking up and Bokuto and smiling softly. “Maybe we can all get dinner some time.” 

“Maybe,” Bokuto replied with a smile, desperately trying to hide his nervousness at Akaashi’s suggestion. Thankfully, Akaashi didn’t seem to notice. “Are you hungry?” 

“I could eat,” Akaashi said, moving back towards the kitchen and forcing himself to not look back to the dog painting. “Are we ordering take out?” 

“I was actually thinking we could cook something together,” Bokuto responded, coming up behind Akaashi and wrapping his arms around his waist to pull him into his chest. 

Bokuto pressed his cheek to the top of Akaashi’s head and gently rocked from side to side, one of his hands coming up to play with the end of the scarf that was tied snug around Akaashi’s neck. Akaashi gave a breathy laugh and turned his head to place a soft kiss on Bokuto’s lips. 

“Sounds good to me.” 

Before long, the apartment was filled with the sounds of knives clacking on chopping boards and the savory and light aroma of hot, oden noodle soup. Bokuto was in charge of cutting up the oden and vegetables, and Akaashi was tasked with making the soup base and boiling the noodles. As Akaashi and Bokuto flitted around the kitchen to fetch different ingredients and tools, lingering touches and soft kisses were left behind that pulled the both of them deeper into the illusion of their pretend lives. 

“I think that’s enough carrots, Taro-san,” Akaashi laughed, jutting his chin out to the mountain of julienned carrots on Bokuto’s chopping board.

“Right,” Bokuto responded with a sheepish smile. Akaashi shook his head incredulously and turned his attention back to the boiling pot of noodles on the stove in front of him. 

“I take it you’re used to making a lot of food at one time?” Akaashi asked, glancing at Bokuto. 

“Yeah,” Bokuto chuckled, pushing the carrot slices into a bowl and moving towards the fridge. “My brother and I could probably eat a whole cow between the two of us, so we usually make a ton of food whenever we cook.” 

“I thought your brother didn’t eat red meat?” Akaashi asked, thinking nothing of his comment. But it made Bokuto’s heart skip a beat as Bokuto had been talking about his other brother in the Canis Family, Iwaizumi, and not Kuroo, the brother he had been describing to Akaashi this whole time. 

“He does when he’s really hungry,” Bokuto replied in as calm and nonchalant manner as possible while opening the fridge. Desperate to change the subject, Bokuto asked, “What about you and your brothers? Do you guys eat a lot?” 

“I don’t, but my brothers do,” Akaashi laughed, carefully wording his answer as to not give away the fact that Kenma and Atsumu were not his only brothers. 

“Maybe we can all get together some time and clear out a buffet,” Bokuto laughed, taking out a pack of oden from the fridge before closing it and turning to Akaashi. 

“I’m sure they would love that,” Akaashi replied with a soft smile, glancing over his shoulder to Bokuto. “Maybe when the weather gets warmer?” 

“Sounds like a plan,” Bokuto responded, moving back to his chopping board and giving Akaashi a kiss on the way. 

They both knew that that plan would never come to fruition, especially with the current events taking place. Both family’s bosses had forbidden the sons from appearing together in public out of concern for their safety. And yet, Bokuto and Akaashi continued to make these “future plans” like a normal couple on a normal date would make.

The night carried on with laughter and chatter from the start of dinner and through the clean up. After putting away the dishes, Bokuto put on a movie in the living room that mostly acted as background noise while he and Akaashi talked in soft whispers to one another. They laid on the couch, arms tightly wrapped around one another with Akaashi’s cheek pressed to Bokuto’s chest and Bokuto’s cheek nuzzled in Akaashi’s hair. 

“Do you know when the coffee shop is going to open again?” Akaashi whispered, his finger drawing lazy circles on Bokuto’s arm. 

“Mm, I think they said that construction would be over in January some time,” Bokuto mused, his hand gently gliding up and down Akaashi’s back. 

“I guess you’ll have to go without your hot chocolate for a little longer then,” Akaashi teased, making Bokuto laugh. 

“I don’t know if I’ll make it,” Bokuto responded, giving Akaashi a light squeeze. “I need my hot coco fix.” 

“You’re ridiculous,” Akaashi chuckled. 

“Yeah, I know.” 

A comfortable silence settled between Bokuto and Akaashi, the only sound coming from the movie still being played on the TV. But Akaashi could only hear Bokuto’s rhythmic heartbeat, and Bokuto could only hear Akaashi’s soft breaths.

“This is nice,” Bokuto murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of Akaashi’s head. 

“Yeah,” Akaashi breathed with a soft sigh. 

But there was a longing in both of their voices that begged for that moment to extend into eternity. A silence settled between them as both of their minds fell into a vicious cycle of “can this work?”, “what would they do if they found out?”, “I never want this to end”. 

“Taro-san?” Akaashi quietly whispered. At the name, Bokuto frowned, wanting nothing more than to hear his real name leave Akaashi’s lips and wondering how it would sound with Akaashi’s smooth and gentle voice.

“Yeah?” A short pause. 

“Do you think we could do this again?” 

Despite all the fear and anxiety in Akaashi’s heart at being so deep in Canis Family territory, his desperate desire to feel safe and loved in Bokuto’s arms pushed him to act against his instincts of self-preservation. 

“I’d like that,” Bokuto responded with a soft sigh.

But, deep down, Bokuto knew that he was being selfish. Every time Akaashi was seen with him was a new opportunity for the Leo Family to potentially target Akaashi should the Leo Family ever discover who Bokuto truly was. It was selfish, and Bokuto _knew_ that. And yet, he also knew that he would fight his way through heaven and hell if it meant getting to be with Akaashi, the only saving grace in his life.

“Maybe next time we could go to your place? I’ve been curious about what “Keishi’s Bachelor Pad” might look like,” Bokuto chuckled, hoping that Akaashi’s place was further away from the reaches of the Leo Family. 

“Maybe,” Akaashi quietly responded, knowing full well that bringing Bokuto into the Leo territory would mean certain death for the man. 

Suddenly, Bokuto’s eyes lit up, and he smiled to himself as he said, “Or, maybe we could travel somewhere else?”

“Like where?” Akaashi replied, silently relieved at the suggestion. 

“Maybe Jeju Island in Korea? I hear it’s beautiful there, and it’s all countryside away from the hustle and bustle of the city?” 

“I’d really like that,” Akaashi breathed, pressing himself closer into Bokuto’s embrace and smiling like a child on Christmas morning.

“It’s a date then.” 

“Sounds good.” 

Akaashi and Bokuto laid in silence as they both dreamed about what a life they could both lead far away from Tokyo. Akaashi wondered if they could find a quaint house in a small town, and Bokuto imagined living on a farm in the middle of several acres of land. But, in the back of both of their minds, they both knew they would never leave their brothers, not even for a chance at real happiness.

Akaashi turned his head up, and he gazed into Bokuto’s eyes, searching and finding the deep emotions Bokuto had for him that made him feel like he was living in a dream. And, as Bokuto looked back, he found and felt the same things. The love inside the both of them bubbled up and overflowed until there was only one thing left to do, one thing left to say, that they both hoped would make their dreams of having these lives, these normal and made-up lives, become reality. 

“I love you, Keishi.” 

“I love you too, Taro-san.” 

But those lives weren’t the lives that either of them led, and, despite how desperately they both clung onto the fantasies of those lives, the hard truth of life was that dreams only lasted for a night.


	4. Waking Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The hardest part of a dream is waking up and having to reconcile that none of it was real. That it was all just a make-believe lie. And, no matter how hard Bokuto and Akaashi wanted it to be real, to keep living in that dream, the truth is that when reality comes knocking, everyone is forced to answer.

When Akaashi’s eyes fluttered open in the morning, he found yourself lying next to Bokuto, his arm draped across Bokuto’s chest and Bokuto’s arm cradled around Akaashi’s body. Through the slits of the curtain, Akaashi could see snow silently falling to the earth. He stared at it a long while, his eyes watching different snowflakes until they disappeared from view. After what seemed like an eternity of wonderfully peaceful silence, Akaashi felt Bokuto’s arm tighten around him and his thumb rub gentle circles on the exposed skin of Akaashi’s hip. 

“Goodmorning,” Akaashi whispered, snuggling into Bokuto’s side until the two were pressed impossibly close to one another. When Akaashi didn’t hear a response, he gave a smirk. “Are you awake, Taro-san?” 

“No,” Bokuto muttered. 

“No?” Akaashi questioned with a light laugh, shifting a little until his chin rested on Bokuto’s chest. Boktuo glanced down at Akaashi through sleep filled eyes and with a small smile on his lips. “Then, how are you responding?” 

“Sleep talking.” 

“Oh, really?” Akaashi chuckled, leaning up until both of their faces were just a kiss away. 

Bokuto trailed his fingers up and down Akaashi’s back, over the t-shirt Akaashi had made sure to put back on after the long hours in the pitch-black night the two had spent loving each other. Unbeknownst to Akaashi, Bokuto had done just the same for the same exact reason. 

“Yes, really,” Bokuto chuckled, closing the distance between with a kiss. 

Their lips moved in perfect harmony with one another, and molded together as if they were made for each other. A wonderful warmness bloomed inside of both men as they lost themselves in each other’s strong and perfect embrace. 

But this beautiful moment that was the culmination of months of dreaming and longing lasted for just that single moment because, as Akaashi was lost in his dream, he sat up to straddle Bokuto’s lap and let Bokuto push up the hem of his shirt until his Leo Family tattoo was in full view. 

Time came to a grinding halt as Akaashi watched shock, disbelief, and terror morph across Bokuto’s features. Then, time launched into hyperspeed as Bokuto shot up and grabbed Akaashi’s wrist in an iron grip. Akaashi’s instincts immediately kicked in, and he grabbed Bokuto by the collar as he threw all his weight to the side, sending the both of them flying off the bed and crashing to the ground. 

The sudden flurry of movements stunned Bokuto just long enough for Akaashi to tear his wrists out of Bokuto’s loosened grip. But before Akaashi could subdue Bokuto, Akaashi felt something hard collide with the side of his face and the metallic taste of blood permeated over his tongue while sharp tears pricked the corner of his eyes. Not a moment later, Akaashi’s world spun as Bokuto flipped the boy onto his back, and pinned Akaashi’s hands to either side of his head. 

“Who are you!?” Bokuto demanded, glaring daggers down at Akaashi. Akaashi, in an absolutely confused daze, furrowed his eyebrows, panting hard and struggling against Bokuto’s painful grasp that had been so soft and comforting just a moment ago. 

“I don’t--” 

“Were you sent here to kill me?!” 

“Why would I be sent here to kill you?” Akaashi shot back, his mind just now starting to catch up to the scene he had been so jarringly thrust into. 

“Who are you?” Bokuto demanded once more, his hazel eyes tearing into Akaashi like those of a wolf going in for the kill. “Why did the Leo Family send you?!”

“Taro-san, I--” 

But Akaashi couldn’t finish because, in that moment, Akaashi’s blood froze in his veins and his heart dropped into his stomach at the sickening realization that flashed across Akaashi’s mind.

In one swift and expert move, Akaashi bucked up his hips and threw Bokuto off balance, allowing Akaashi to pull one of his hands out of Bokuto’s grasp. Akaashi struck the inside of Bokuto’s elbow on the arm that was still pinning him down, causing the whole arm to collapse and release his other hand. At the same time, Akaashi brought one of his legs out from under Bokuto and used it as leverage to twist himself up. Then, in a blink of an eye, Akaashi grabbed one of Bokuto’s arms and wrenched it onto Bokuto’s back, causing the boy to yelp and collapse onto his stomach. 

Akaashi sat his entire weight on the small of Bokuto’s back, one hand continuing to twist Bokuto’s arm while the other held Bokuto’s head firmly in place. And when Bokuto tried to wiggle out from under him, Akaashi twisted his arm harder until Bokuto laid perfectly still. 

A tense and deafening silence settled in the room as both boys panted hard. A million thoughts flew across Akaashi’s mind as he tried to make sense of what was happening and tried to figure out a way to get out of this situation alive.

“You’re in the Canis Family?” Akaashi questioned in an attempt to buy himself some time as he formulated an escape. But he couldn’t help but curse himself for how tiny and shaky his voice sounded in his ears. When Bokuto didn’t respond, Akaashi pressed harder against Bokuto’s arm until Bokuto hissed and responded.    
  
“Yes!” 

If it were any other situation, Akaashi could have laughed at how easily he was able to break a member of the Canis Family. But this wasn’t any other situation.  Akaashi quickly glanced around the room, holding Bokuto still firmly in place, and his eyes fell on his duffle bag across the room where he had packed his knife.

“Was this a trap?” Akaashi asked, trying to figure out if he could make it to his bag in time to grab the knife and fend off the man he had thought he knew so well.

“What? How could this be a trap? I didn’t know who you were two seconds ago.”

Bokuto tried once more to throw Akaashi off of him, but Akaashi twisted his arm harder to keep him still. Bokuto let out a painful cry, but when Akaashi heard a strained “Keishi” leave Bokuto’s lips, his heart stopped, and his grip loosened for a split second. But in that split second, Akaashi felt Bokuto ripped his arm out of Akaashi’s grasp, and Akaashi somersaulted backwards off Bokuto. 

Akaashi sprang to his feet and dove across the room to his duffle bag, reaching inside and whipping out his knife to point at Bokuto. Bokuto froze in place as Akaashi stared him down, and Akaashi carefully took a fighting stance, ready to pounce at any given movement. Slowly, Bokuto raised his hands in front of him in as non-threatening a manner as possible. 

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Bokuto started, standing up straight and hesitantly stepping around the bed. Akaashi kept his eyes fixed on Bokuto the whole while, every muscle in his body tense and ready to fight. “You don’t want to start a war, do you? Let’s talk about this.” 

Akaashi furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and frowned. “What do you mean?” 

“I mean. A son of the Canis family being killed by a son from the Leo Family? That’s a pretty big deal,” Bokuto slowly started once more, stopping at the foot of the bed. Right over a duffle bag. His own duffle bag. 

But Akaashi realized a moment too late as Bokuto picked up the duffle and threw it at Akaashi. Akaashi ducked under the duffle and just barely managed to side step out of the way of Bokuto’s blade. Akaashi swung his own knife up and felt a small drag on the black steel followed by a sharp yelp. Suddenly, Akaashi felt a strong, sharp, and painful strike to the side of his head. 

Akaashi stumbled onto the ground, his vision blurry and speckled with stars. He felt something hot trickle down the side of his face, and the side of his head started to throb. He peered up and could just barely make out Bokuto clutching his chest, a deep and sickening red spreading over where Akaashi’s knife had sliced through his shirt. Akaashi rolled away before trying to get back onto his feet, but to no avail. 

“Fuck,” Akaashi breathed as his legs gave out from under him. 

He tried to get back up once more, but couldn’t overcome the dizzying ringing in his ears. His hand came up to the side of his head, and his fingers were met with hot and sticky blood. Slowly, Akaashi looked up and saw Bokuto stalking towards him, his white blade in his hand and ready to strike. Akaashi brought his knife up in front of him, but at the sight of Bokuto, Akaashi’s mind went blank. 

He knew that his days were numbered, but he would never have guessed that his death would be at the hands of the man he had fallen in love with. And, yet, as much as Akaashi didn’t want to die, as much as he wanted to live a long life with his brothers, he felt a strange and eerie calm settle over him as he accepted his fate. 

“Wait,” Akaashi croaked, feebly lifting a hand while dropping his knife onto the floor. Bokuto stopped in his tracks, but his eyes and blade didn’t falter. “Before you kill me, could you just do me just one last favour?” 

“What?” came Bokuto’s confused and stunned response. Bokuto furrowed his eyebrows, and Akaashi couldn’t help but smile at Bokuto’s expression. The same expression Akaashi had seen on the man he thought was Taro’s face so many times before. 

“Just one favour, please,” Akaashi continued, sliding his knife as far away as he could in an attempt to seem as non threatening as possible. “There’s an acid capsule in my phone. Can you let me get rid of my family’s crest before you kill me?” 

“Why?” Bokuto questioned, taking a step back but slowly lowering his knife. 

“What you said before,” Akaashi explained, wiping the blood off his cheek with the back of his hand. “About the war.” A pause. “I don’t want it to start. And if you kill me and someone finds out, then it’ll start. I don’t want that.” 

“Why?” 

“Because,” Akaashi started, slowly but daringly shifting on the ground until he was sitting with his back against the wall. “My family. My brothers, they-- we lost enough in the last war. I can’t have them lose anyone else in another war that  _ I _ start.” 

“What do you mean?” Bokuto asked, moving to the foot of the bed across from Akaashi and taking a tentative seat, his blade still in his hands. 

“My mom,” Akaashi quietly confessed, staring at the ground at Bokuto’s feet. “She was killed in the last war. Another one of my brothers lost his mom too, and another lost his uncle.” 

There was a short and heavy pause while Akaashi waited for Bokuto’s response, still unable to meet his eyes. Then. “What about you?” 

“What?” Akaashi asked, his eyes snapping up to Bokuto. And when Akaashi saw a deep and familiar sadness in Boktuo’s eyes, he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. 

“Won’t your brothers miss you if you died?” 

“Probably,” Akaashi replied, unable to suppress his cynical chuckle. “But The Boss has had it out for me for a while now. So, we all knew it was just a matter of time until I died.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean," Akaashi started. He paused for just a moment, then gave a defeated sigh. “I guess since this is it, I might as well come clean about everything.” Akaashi gave a small smile as he continued, “The Boss wants me dead because of something my father said. So, he’s been sending me into Canis territory almost every week on different missions, hoping that someone will catch me and kill me.” 

“Seriously?” Bokuto gawked at the boy. 

“Yeah,” Akaashi quietly replied.

“What did your dad do that was so bad that your boss would go and do something like that?” Bokuto questioned, his eyebrows knitted together and a deep frown on his lips. 

“Let’s just say that he offended The Boss,” Akaashi replied with a pained smile. “And The Boss decided to take it out on me.” 

“Jesus,” Bokuto breathed, running his fingers through his hair. “I thought  _ my  _ dad was scary, but your boss…” 

“Yeah,” Akaashi chuckled as he brought his knees up to his chest. Then, Akaashi furrowed his eyebrows and snapped his eyes up at Bokuto. “Wait, what do you mean “your dad”?” A pause. “Earlier you said that you’re a Canis Family son, right?” 

“Shit,” Bokuto quietly replied with a stunned expression. He sucked in a breath through his teeth and exhaled slowly before giving a sheepish chuckle. “My brothers always said that I was terrible at keeping secrets.” 

“So,” Akaashi slowly started, sitting up straighter and hugging his knees tightly to his chest. “You’re the heir?” 

“Guilty,” Bokuto replied, carefully pulling down the collar of his shirt to reveal his family’s crest and the mark of the heir. Above the tattoo was the small gash Akaashi’s blade had left.

“Of course you are,” Akaashi sighed, dropping his head and shaking it. A second later, he looked up at Bokuto and wyrfully chuckled. “At least I’ll get taken out by the heir and not some low-level goon.” 

“Right,” Bokuto breathily chuckled, looking down at the blade in his hands and turning it over. An eternity of silence seemed to pass as Akaashi carefully watched Bokuto stare at the blade. Finally, Bokuto looked up and sighed. “Listen, I’m not too keen on starting this war either, you know. Your family wasn’t the only one who took hard hits.” 

“I know,” Akaashi quietly murmured. “I never assumed we were.” 

“My sister,” Bokuto continued, setting the blade down beside him on the bed. “And my brother’s mom. They both died in the last war.” 

“I’m so sorry,” Akaashi whispered, suddenly understanding Bokuto’s familiarly pained expression from before. 

“Yeah.” 

There was another long pause before Akaashi spoke again, “So, what now?” 

“Not sure,” Bokuto admitted with a sad smile. “I mean. I’m the heir of the Canis Family and you’re one of the sons of the Leo Family. This war.” A pause. “It’s not a matter of “if” it’s a matter of “when”. And  _ when _ it starts…” Bokuto cast Akaashi a pained look. “I have to protect my brothers… I  _ will _ protect them. No matter what.” 

“I understand,” Akaashi solemnly replied, Bokuto’s words resonating with him. “I feel the same.” 

“But…” A pause. “I won’t kill you.” 

“What?” Akaashi stared in disbelief at the sudden statement. “Why?” 

“Because,” Bokuto started, slowly standing up and walking towards Akaashi, leaving his blade behind. Akaashi tensed slightly as Bokuto crouched down in front of him. “Because,” Bokuto repeated again softly, gently cupping Akaashi’s bruised cheek. “I made a promise to myself that I would protect you too. No matter what.” 

“I--” Akaashi stuttered. Akaashi’s mind fell into a hazy daze as he stared into Bokuto’s warm and tender, hazel eyes. “Why?” 

“Because I love you, stupid,” Bokuto chuckled, leaning in and leaving a ghost of a kiss on Akaashi’s forehead. “That’s why.” 

Akaashi looked up at Bokuto, searching for some kind of emotion in his face that would indicate a lie. But all Akaashi saw was the same love and care that Bokuto had had last night when he held Akaashi close and whispered all the things that he felt from him.

“I love you,” Bokuto said again. Akaashi placed his hand gently over Bokuto’s and pressed his cheek further into his touch. “I wasn’t lying before. And I’m not lying now. I. Love. You.” 

“I love you too,” Akaashi breathed, a small, incredulous, and relieved smile on his lips, and a calming warmness spreading in his heart. The same warmness that made Akaashi feel safe in a way that only Bokuto did. 

_________

Bokuto led Akaashi back to the bed and sat him down on the edge, his mind still trying to make sense of what was happening. When Bokuto fell asleep with Akaashi in his arms, he thought Akaashi was Keishi, an ordinary citizen who was totally unaffiliated with Bokuto’s way of life. But when he woke up, Bokuto found out that Akaashi was not only part of the Leo Family, but was also one of the main family’s sons. And it all left Bokuto in total and indescribable shock and confusion. 

Bokuto stood in front of Akaashi, watching as Akaashi glanced away from him and gave a small frown. Not knowing what to say or do or if there was anything Bokuto could say or do, he just decided to speak whatever came to mind. After all, there was nothing that could be said or done to make the situation go away or be any different than what it was.

“What do we do now?” Akaashi asked, looking up at Bokuto. Bokuto stared blankly for a moment before responding. 

“I don’t know,” Bokuto started, taking a seat next to Akaashi and wincing slightly as his shirt brushed against the gash on his chest. “Would it be too much to ask to pretend like none of this happened?”

“Yeah,” Akaashi chuckled, taking the hem of his shirt and dabbing it to, what Bokuto just realized was, his split lip. “Just a bit.” 

“But what if that’s what  _ I _ want?” The words spilled out before Bokuto could stop himself. Yet, he felt no apprehension at what he was saying. “What if I just want to pretend this morning never happened? What if I want to pretend and then we can just go back to being us?”

“I--” Akaashi looked away. “We can’t.” 

“Please, Keishi,” Bokuto started, just barely managing to not stumble over his words. “You’re all I ever think about every minute of every day. When I wake up, before I go to sleep. Even when I dream. It’s all you. I love you in ways that I never thought I would ever love another person. It’s always been you and it will  _ always  _ be you.” 

Akaashi stared blankly at Bokuto for a long while until, suddenly, the frown on his lips turned into that playful smile Bokuto had fallen for all those months ago. “Akaashi.” 

“What?” Bokuto asked, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. 

“My name,” Akaashi chuckled. “It’s not Keishi. It’s Akaashi. Keishi’s my alias.” 

“Right,” Bokuto laughed, a small blush of embarrassment dusting his cheeks. “Akaashi.” 

The name rolled off Bokuto’s tongue as if it were a precious memory he had once forgotten but just now remembered. Akaashi smiled while Bokuto silently repeated Akaashi’s name over and over to himself. And, for some reason unknown to Bokuto, the name felt more comfortable and familiar than “Keishi” ever did.

“And I’m guessing your name isn’t Taro?” Akaashi asked with a small smirk. 

Bokuto shook his head and laughed. “It’s Bokuto. But I wasn’t lying about my dad proposing to my mom with Taro yogurt. That part actually happened.” 

“Right,” Akaashi laughed. Bokuto smiled as he saw the tension leaving Akaashi’s shoulders and face. 

Bokuto stared at Akaashi, taking in everything that Akaashi was until Bokuto was sure this image of Akaashi, his smiling and laughing Akaashi, would be forever ingrained into his mind. Suddenly, the craziest and stupidest idea Bokuto had ever come up with in his life popped into his head. But, hell, Bokuto didn’t care how insane and unimaginably impossible his idea was because, on the slight chance that it worked, he would get to be with Akaashi. Even if it was only just for a moment longer.

“Hey,” Bokuto said, courting Akaashi’s attention. Bokuto leaned forwards slightly and cupped Akaashi’s cheeks as tenderly as holding a dove. “Do you love me?”

“Yes,” Akaashi breathed, a rosy pink blooming on his cheeks that made Bokuto’s heart skip a beat.

“Then… maybe we can pretend that it’ll work.” 

“What do you mean?” 

Bokuto sat up straight and turned to face Akaashi properly, taking Akaashi’s hands into his own and clinging onto them as if they would disappear at any moment. 

“Until the sun rises on Monday, let’s pretend that this can work. That we aren’t the people we were raised to be.” 

“Pretend…?” Akaashi slowly said, looking down at Bokuto’s hands over his and furrowing his eyebrows. 

“Yeah,” Bokuto responded, bringing up one of his hands and gently placing a finger under Akaashi’s chin to turn his face up to him. “I can be Taro and you can be Keishi, and we can pretend like nothing’s changed.” 

“I don’t know…” 

“Please, Akaashi?” 

He gave Akaashi the best reassuring smile he could, desperately praying that Akaashi would agree. And, when Akaashi slowly nodded, Boktuo’s heart jumped and goosebumps erupted over his entire body. 

“Okay, until Monday,” Akaashi whispered, giving a small smile. Then, Akaashi leaned back slightly and smirked. “But, since we’re being honest with each other now. There’s one more confession I have to make.” 

“Oh lord,” Bokuto chuckled. “What is it? Are you going to tell me that you’re the Jaguar or something?” 

Bokuto laughed, waiting for Akaashi to deny it. But when Akaashi didn’t, Bokuto’s jaw dropped and his eyes bugged out as he stared at the smirking man. 

“Wait, are you really?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Well, damn,” Bokuto started, a smirk spreading on his lips. “Not gonna lie. I’ve always wanted to meet you, so this is pretty cool.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Akaashi laughed. 

“Yeah,” Bokuto said, leaning down and gingerly pressing a kiss to Akaashi’s bleeding lip. “I know.”

_________

Bokuto and Akaashi spent the rest of the morning patching each other up, apologizing profusely for hurting one another and blindly promising not to do it again. Both agreed to not talk about either families, including names and current family movements. Blades were sheathed and left on the dining room table, in full view, with their cellphones. Bokuto assured Akaashi that there were no other hidden weapons or bugs in the apartment, explaining that he and his “brother” refused to have any in their safe house. And Akaashi highly suggested that Bokuto and his “brother” find a new safehouse because Akaashi’s “brothers” may or may not have the address to the current one. 

And when they were ready, Akaashi and Bokuto started to pretend not to be members of the Leo Family and Canis Family. They both pretended that they were the normal people they had been pretending to be this whole time: two strangers who met at a coffee shop, fell in love, and didn’t need to worry about bosses, agendas, and war. 

For the rest of the weekend, Bokuto spent every second by Akaashi’s side, always either having Akaashi’s hand in his or his arms wrapped around Akaashi. Akaashi did just the same and spoke soft words of love whenever he could. Neither of them left the apartment once as they both pretended that their dream lives would never come to an end. 

The whole while, snow flurried all around outside until the world was covered in a white blanket, creating a cocoon inside which Akaashi and Bokuto could pretend everything was okay and pretend that they lived in a world where they could love each other, safe and unhindered, with no worries of what the future may hold. 

But when Monday morning came, the snow had stopped, and Bokuto woke, alone, left only with a note from Akaashi saying that he loved him and hoped that, in their next lives, things would be different and that they could meet each other again and fall in love once more. 

Bokuto’s scarf was nowhere to be seen.

_______

“Soooo, how was your weekend, Bokuto?” 

“It was nice.” 

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” 

“Yeah.” 

“...did Keishi find out?” 

“No.” 

“Then, what’s the matter?” 

“He fell in love with me, and there’s no way that I can give him the life that he deserves.” 

“Oh… I’m so sorry.” 

“Me too.” 

_________

“Did you have a good time, Akaashi?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Are you gonna see him again soon?” 

“No.” 

“Why? What happened?” 

“Nothing.”

“Then, why?” 

“Because...he fell in love with me, and there’s no way that I can love him back in the same way. Not in this life.” 

“Oh… I’m so sorry.” 

“Me too.” 


	5. The Coffee Shop...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "One more day with you..."

Days turned into weeks that turned into months. The weather grew just warmer, and flowers began to sprout up and bloom. The world seemed to be readying itself for the new season of rebirth and new beginnings. At the same time, both the Canis Family and Leo Family prepared themselves for the start of war. 

Neither Akaashi or Bokuto had heard from each other the whole while, instead busying themselves with training and strategy planning. On the outside, they worked hard for the sake of their families. But, on the inside, it was just an attempt to ignore the ache from their broken hearts. It was for the best, they both knew. Yet, Bokuto still frequented the coffee shop in foolish hope that Akaashi would be there waiting for him, and Akaashi would search for Bokuto from the rooftops during Akaashi’s perilous missions into the Canis Family territory. 

And today was the same as any other. Bokuto walked down the sidewalk towards the coffee shop like he did every afternoon for the last 2 months and four days. Not that he was counting. 

The crisp but warmer air carried the scent of new flowers, and more people seemed to be strolling around to welcome Spring. Children’s laughter and excited chatter drifted through the air as they passed by, hand in hand with their mothers and fathers. And the sun shone down in a brilliant display of rebirth and new beginnings. 

Bokuto kept a steady pace the whole while to the coffeeshop, a ball cap pulled down over his face and his hands shoved in his jacket pockets. Though his eyes were mostly fixated on the ground or directly ahead of him, his senses were on alert for any sudden or suspicious movements. 

In no time at all, Bokuto soon found himself approaching the doors of the coffee shop, stray Sakura petals flitting through the air from various trees along the way. When Bokuto got to the doors, he placed a hand on the cold, metal handle, paused, and took a deep breath, readying himself for the usual disappointment and sadness that followed whenever he had walked into the shop for the past few months.

Slowly, he opened the door, the smells and sounds of roasted coffee hitting him like a cold splash of water. Which is how, when Bokuto glanced around and found him, he knew it was more than just another wishful dream. 

Ajaashi sat in that same corner table, staring down at the steaming cup in his hands, a beanie on his head and Bokuto’s scarf wrapped tightly around his neck. To someone just passing by, he looked like a normal person enjoying a cup of coffee, but to Bokuto, he looked like a person pulled from a dream and made into a real-life person. 

Bokuto stood in the doorway, just staring at Akaashi until, after what seemed like an eternit, Akaashi glanced up and locked eyes with Bokuto. Bokuto felt the world come to a stand still as he and Akaashi stared at each other. Then, a small smile grew on Akaashi lips, and Bokuto’s world started to move again. 

He made his way towards Akaashi, his heart beating harder with every step and his mind swirling with burning questions and overwhelming emotions. By the time he got to the table, Bokuto’s heart seemed to threaten to beat out of his chest, and he tried to wipe away the sweat on his palms on the inside of his jacket pockets while he slowly took a seat across from Akaashi. Both sat in silence a moment, Bokuto staring down at the table and trying to calm his erratic heart. 

But when he glanced up and saw Akaashi smiling at him, he felt all his anxieties wash away. Bokuto instantly smiled back, sat up straight, and pushed the ball cap up his head to reveal his full face to Akaashi. 

“Hi,” Akaashi whispered, his voice ringing in Bokuto’s ears and warming Bokuto’s heart. 

“Hey,” Bokuto breathed, smiling softly while his eyes drank in Akaashi’s every feature. There was another moment of silence until Bokuto finally asked the first question that flashed through his head when he walked into the coffeeshop. “How are you here?” 

Akaashi’s eyes flickered down to the coffee cup in his hands, the smile on his lips turning wry and pained. Bokuto furrowed his eyebrows and gave a small frown, carefully watching Akaashi’s face as he waited for an answer. 

“I wanted to see you,” Akaashi slowly replied looking back up at Bokuto with some kind of emotion in his eyes. “I  _ needed _ to see you.”

Bokuto’s heart skipped a beat at the answer, but the inflection in Akaashi’s voice gave him great pause. Slowly, Bokuto asked “Why?” 

Akaashi’s eyes fell for a moment as he took his phone out of his pocket, tapped the screen a few times, and showed it to Bokuto. 

“Our mark.” 

Bokuto looked at the screen and felt his heart drop into his stomach. It was a picture of Kuroo entering one of the Canis Family family’s shared safehouses. Kuroo had been ordered to stay there until given orders from the family head to rotate to another safehouse. 

As Bokuto stared in shock, Akaashi continued, “Our scouts have been watching him for a while, and he hasn’t left for nearly 23 hours now.” 

Bokuto felt his mouth run dry and his stomach churn as he took Akaashi’s phone into his hands and brought it closely to his face. Bokuto’s mind raced with thoughts about Kuroo, Kuroo’s safety, and how Bokuto could possibly live without his brother and best friend while also knowing that Akaashi’s family would be the reason why Kuroo was dead. 

“Midnight.” Bokuto looked up from the phone to find Akaashi staring intently at him. “You have until midnight to get him out.” 

“Midnight…” Bokuto repeated in an absolute daze, glancing back down at Akaashi’s phone before placing it on the table and looking at him. “Why are you telling me this? They’re going to brand you as a traitor and kill you.” 

The corner of Akaashi’s lip twitched up into an incredulous smile and his eyes focused on the phone in front of him. 

“I’m probably gonna end up dead either way,” Akaashi started, looking back up at Bokuto. “This morning, when The Boss gave the order to…” Akaashi trailed off and looked away again as Bokuto’s heart stopped. “He said that he had let my identity “slip” to a Canis Family scout so that I could be used as bait tonight to lure your brother out.” 

Bokuto stared in shock at Akaashi, his mouth slightly agape and his eyes wide with disbelief. There was a pregnant pause as Bokuto desperately searched for the words to say in response to Akaashi’s devastating confession. 

But all that Bokuto could muster was a pained, “Why?” 

Akaashi looked back to Bokuto, his eyes growing misty and the corner of his lips twitching down into a frown. “I guess to start the war on our terms? Or to finally get rid of me? Maybe both.” A pause. “I don’t know anymore.” 

“I--”,” Bokuto stuttered, all responses in his head falling apart as his heart cracked and split. “He can’t.” 

Akaashi pursed his lips and blinked away the tears that threatened to spill over, his grip on his coffee cup tightening until his knuckles turned white. “The order’s been given. There’s no stopping it now.” 

“Akaashi,” Bokuto quietly said, carefully reaching out his hands and cupping them around Akaashi’s. They fit perfectly in Bokuto’s, as if they were made just for him, and the warmth of Akaashi’s hands permeated through Bokuto’s hands. 

“This war’s gonna start no matter what happens tonight,” Akaashi quickly started before Bokuto could say anything else. Akaashi gave a sad smile to Bokuto as he continued, “But I thought, maybe, by doing this, I could prolong it for just one more day. One more day with our brothers and...” A pause. “One more day with you.” 

“I--”,” Bokuto started, searching for the words to say. But only two words truly came to mind. “Thank you.” 

Akaashi smiled and curtly nodded. Bokuto softly gazed at Akaashi, gently stroking the back of Akaashi’s hand with his thumb. Then, Bokuto took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. 

“Maybe you can stay here,” Bokuto suggested, knowing full well how Akaashi would respond. “I could protect you.”

“Tempting,” Akaashi chuckled. “But I have brothers I need to protect too, and I’ve got faith that they’ll help keep me alive for at least a little while longer.” 

“That’s not long enough for me.”

Bokuto gently coaxed Akaashi’s hand from the coffee mug and brought it up to his lips. He placed a soft but longing kiss on Akaashi’s knuckles before pressing his cheek against them. Akaashi smiled softly at the gesture, and Bokuto returned the same, loving smile. 

“I love you, Akaashi,” Bokuto quietly said, placing another kiss on Akaashi’s hand. 

“I love you too, Bokuto-san,” Akaashi returned, this time pulling Bokuto’s hand to his own lips. Bokuto smiled and cupped Akaashi’s cheek, stroking it gently with his thumb. 

“I’ll protect you,” Bokuto blindly promised, not sure if he was trying to convince himself or the man he loved. Maybe both.

“And I you,” Akaashi quietly replied. 

He released Bokuto’s hand, but Bokuto let it linger for just a moment longer. There was a short moment of silence as the weight of those words settled over Bokuto and Akaashi. There was a storm coming, and neither knew who would be swept away in the torrential downpour of blood and tears. But the one thing they both knew was that they both would do anything to save the people that they loved.

“Can I buy you a coffee?” 

“I’d like that.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to my grandma... I wish I had one more day with you, 할모니, to tell you all the things I should've told you my whole life. I'm sorry that I, we, couldn't be there for you when you needed us most. I hope we meet again in another life so that I can tell you all those things and be the grandchild you deserved. 할머니, 사랑 해요. 보고 싶어요.


End file.
